In case you missed the announcement, Joomla! 1.6 was released late Monday night. Hooray! Celebrations are being planned across the globe. Much of it has been rebuilt from the ground up and there are several noteworthy features added. It has been streamlined for better work-flow, categories have been restructured, modules can now be published with start & end times, and SEO has been improved. Highlights are in the graphic at the end of this post and you can read more about the incredible new Joomla! 1.6 at http://www.joomla.org/16/

You may be asking "What does this mean for my site?"
Here are my recommendations:

If you are preparing to build a new site start with Joomla! 1.6. This will save you the trouble of migrating later. There is no legacy mode (support for older version components), but they have made it easy for developers to upgrade their existing components. With the new ACL structure and new plugin format developers will be able to build, update, and deploy extensions faster. There are 108 Joomla! 1.6 native extensions available in the Joomla! Extensions Directory so far, and plenty more already underway.

If you currently have a Joomla! 1.5 site keep what you have for now unless your site is very basic or a major site overhaul is already planned. Joomla! 1.5 is still supported and if you have multiple extensions you may want to wait until they are released for 1.6 before migrating. Just keep up with security updates for the core and extensions in the meantime. If your site is very basic and your server meets the requirements, by all means go ahead and migrate. Your template will need a few code changes if there is not already a 1.6 version available. If you are planning a site rebuild anyway you might as well start out with everything shiny and new Joomla! 1.6 has to offer.

If you currently have a Joomla! 1.0 site what are you waiting for? Joomla 1.0 has not been supported since August 2009 and your site is at risk. RUN (don't walk) to connect with a Joomla professional who can help you build a new site! Server upgrade compatibility and security issues abound and updating your site is an urgent matter.

Here are the top ten improvements found in Joomla! 1.6 -

If you currently use a CMS (content management system) other than Joomla! no hard feelings, but you may want to take a second look before updatng your site. Also check out the very supportive and wonderful Joomla! community on the forums and at Joomla! People to add icing to the cake.

And if your company site is one your nephew built 3 years ago using html or a site builder you need better representation, we need to talk.